Most drug companies fail to meet export standards, study says
Most drug companies fail to meet export standards, study says
Tony Hotland, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Only 10 percent of the country's 190 pharmaceutical companies
have received the Current Good Manufacturing Practices (CGMP)
certification for export, revealed a study by the Food and Drug
Monitoring Agency (BPOM).
"If more companies fulfill CGMP conditions, our exports can
increase and of course, this will have a positive impact on our
pharmaceutical industry," BPOM head Sampoerno said on Friday
during a discussion on the national pharmaceutical industry.
The CGMP is a BPOM certificate that assesses the "hardware and
software" conditions of a pharmaceutical company and which gives
license for a company to export its products. Those without CGMP
certification can only sell to the domestic market.
The certification checks factors such as the conditions of a
company's facilities, production process, stability of raw
materials and human resource quality.
"For example, the design of a pharmaceutical factory should be
circular to prevent dust and other pollutants from collecting in
corners. The ratio of raw materials per gram or individual dose
of a drug should be consistent," BPOM spokesperson Buddy
Nataatmadja told The Jakarta Post.
Many companies are deterred from making an effort to obtain
CGMP certification, said Buddy, because it required additional
investment to improve equipment and because of the dual standard
in the pharmaceutical trade.
The disparity between domestic and international drug
standards meant that pharmaceutical companies could profit
through domestic sales without investing extra capital on quality
equipment and facilities necessary to meet international drug
standards.
According to BPOM data, only 20 of the 190 companies have
satisfactory hardware and software conditions, while 53 have
minor flaws, 88 require repairs and 29 require major repairs.
Sampoerno said pharmaceutical exports last year made over
US$100 million, an increase from $97.98 million in 2002.
He added that the sector should have a strategic orientation
to develop its export potential. "Our goal is to seize a 30
percent global market share by 2010, up from the current 10
percent."
The chairman of the Indonesian Pharmaceutical Association
(GPFI), Anthony Sunarjo, lamented Indonesia's low per capita drug
expenditure.
"Our per capita drug expenditure stands at only $4.8. Compare
that to the Philippines with $13.5, or Malaysia with $12.9."
Anthony, nevertheless, was optimistic that the pharmaceutical
industry would advance in 2004, with a projected increase of 10
percent to 15 percent.
Economist Didik Rachbini from the Institute for Development of
Economics and Finance, warned that the projection could only be
realized if drug expenditures increased.
"We must improve the public's consumption rate to raise drug
expenditures, and the consumption rate will only begin to pick up
when the overall industry makes progress," said Didik.